IV - The First “Successes”

Summary

Abstract

Masaniello brings order to the revolt: he relieves those who soughtrefuge in the churches, and decrees that the gabelledesist. He is “in command,” even though many still have nonotion who he is. So the bakers bake good bread, and the populacerejoices. Masaniello also pulls off raids on the street of thesword-smiths and at the dwellings of noble Ferrante Caracciolo, to armthe troops of the populace to secure the food supply. Meanwhile, firessprout, targeting those who had battened off thegabella, or who had rallied support to vote thehated taxes in.

Keywords: bread, arms, Ferrante Caracciolo, f ires, plunder,profiteering

A New Scenario

That night, the viceroy left the convent of San Luigi to go up to castleSant’Elmo. He then descended to Castelnuovo to meet the knights andministers who had taken refuge there. And he ordered trenches dug.Masaniello, meanwhile, went to liberate the “fugitives” fromthe churches. Among his followers was a friar who lived in the same conventas Fra Sebastiano di Bologna. The next morning, with the authority he hadacquired in the past few hours, Masaniello issued assorted orders:“that they collect no more gabelle, that breadshould weigh 33 ounces.” He also “[…] sent out variouscompanies not only through all the borghi of the city butalso through all the casali [suburban villages], which are36 in number, to have them take up arms and come aid the People ofNaples.” So, in the city, it gradually became clear that one had toobey “Tomas’Aniello.” “And because the cause waspublic, and useful to all the Peoples, the orders were embraced and carriedout even though nobody knew who Tomas’Aniello was.”

We read that the orders were “carried out with punctuality and greatjoy of the People.” But the greatest “joy” was seeingbread in “good form.” The bakers had seconded the will of thepeople, as both the cardinal and the viceroy, terrified by what hashappening, had also given the command.

But let us ponder the meaning of that “joy.” From time out ofmemory, the local bread had been neither white nor of generous weight.